Jack Dawkins
by MessageRat
Summary: This is the story of what happened when the Septimus Heap characters, as well some new characters from their world, meet Jack Dawkins, a young thief. This Jack Dawkins is based off Luke O'Loughlin's character from Escape of the Artful Dodger, and the story occurs after the events of that series.
1. Chapter 1: A Rescue and a Theft

**Wotcha! Welcome to my brain. First, this is my first fanfiction, so please r &r. Secondly, Gia, one of the characters, has a backstory, and a rather complex one, that I have not written, but may do so in the future.**

Gia smiled. She had always loved London, with its bustling yet mysterious air. She nudged Annie, the girl next to her, and said,

"How do you like the big city? Pretty different from back home, eh?"

"You could say that again. But the city is wonderful." Annie's pale blue eyes darted from shop to shop. Gia looked over at one of the stalls nearby.

"I'm just going to take a look at those dresses, we need some clothes to fit the time period." With a swing of her long golden braid, and a cheerful twirl of her threadbare green dress, Gia was gone.

Annie spent a few minutes taking in the landscape, which reminded her a little of the Ramblings, and a little of the Way. But that was where the similarities ended. The people here dressed strangely and talked in a strange manner about things she would probably never understand.

Suddenly, she heard a noise behind her, getting louder by the second. She turned around and saw a cart clattering towards her, going to fast to stop. Annie stood, paralyzed. Astonished by the sight of the cart, unlike any she had seen before, she hadn't recognized the danger until it was upon her. As the cart closed in, the driver trying madly to stop the horses, Annie closed her eyes.

When she opened them again, it took her a few seconds to realize that she was not dead. Then she saw the reason for this. A boy, out of breath, lay next to her on the cobblestone. She got up, helped him up, and dusted herself off. The boy had dark brown eyes and silky dark hair. He wore a worn hat and coat. He looked like he fit in this city, and he was young, maybe only a year or two older than her.

"Try not to get yourself killed. I do hate it when pretty girls die." He tipped his dented hat at her, and she blushed. As he was about to leave, she stopped him.

"Wait! I must know your name, you just saved my life." The boy stopped and turned around. He wondered if he should tell this girl his real name. The fewer people knew who he was, the better. But he looked at her innocent face, and felt that if he was going to trust anyone, it would be this girl.

"Jack. Jack Dawkins. And you?" The boy, Jack, raised his eyebrows at Annie.

"Annie Malone. Well, goodbye Jack Dawkins."

"Goodbye, Annie Malone"

As the boy walked jauntily away, he bumped into Gia. Gia had lived on the streets before, and could feel her pocketbook slip into the boy's hands. Quickly, she snagged a piece of paper from his breast pocket. She knew that pickpockets rarely have money on them, but they keep important things close to their hearts.

As the boy muttered a quick apology and hurried away, Gia smiled, knowing she could use the paper to barter with the young thief. When she returned to Annie, she quickly excused herself, not giving Annie a chance to tell her what had happened.

Soon afterwards, Gia was waiting at the end of an alleyway. She had been in London before, and knew that Jack would take the quickest escape route.

Just as she suspected, it wasn't long before the thief came through. Stepping out of the shadows, she grabbed his arm. She looked at him angrily.

"Give it back." As Jack turned towards her, she caught her breath, and her grip loosened. He shook her off him.

"Why should I?" he challenged.

"Well, first of all, if you want to be a successful pickpocket, you might want to try some fuller purses. Secondly, if you give me my pocketbook, I'll give you this." She pulled out the piece of paper.

"How do you know I want that?"

"Well, you keep it near your heart." The boy reached under his coat into a hidden pocket.

"How did you..."

"This isn't my first time on the streets of London. I wonder what a scoundrel such as you could possibly..." Gia stopped short. She had unfolded the paper, and now saw a drawing of a woman.

Jack smiled. "Cat got your tongue?"

Gia looked back and forth from Jack to the picture, astonished. "You... remind me of someone. Is this your mother?"

"That's nobody's business but mine. Now give it here." The two exchanged the pocketbook and picture. And, with another tip of his hat, the boy disappeared into the foggy maze of London.


	2. Chapter 2: A Pair of Strangers

**Hi. This is my new chapter. I don't think it's as long as the last one, also I wanted to clear a few things up. First, even though this story is tagged with the musical Oliver! I have never seen the musical. This story takes place, as I have said before, after the events of Escape of the Artful Dodger, and references to events occurring in the previous story of Oliver Twist, are mainly those that do not vary between adaptations. However, in this story, the Dodger did not give Nancy up willingly, Sikes had to threaten him.**

Snorri glanced at Nicko, then at the large oak door before them. They, along with the rest of their companions, had been dumbfounded when they arrived in London. It was so different from the cheery streets of the Castle, and even more different from Snorri's frigid homeland. This house was no exception.

Snorri watched Nicko nervously finger the piece of paper that Gia had given him. She felt a shiver go down her spine. The mansion rising above her had the same mysterious air as the House of Foryx, the feeling that if she went in, she might never come out.

Snorri shook herself. They were simply here to get a job, that was all. This time there would be no strange hunchback to answer the door with a sneer. No burly guards to take her away to a cell, for a crime she never committed. Gia said Mr. Brownlow was a kind man, and Gia was rarely wrong about people. She and Nicko were going to ask about a job at the boatyard.

So Snorri reached for Nicko's hand, the boy she trusted more than anyone else in the world, and he took her slender pale hand in his rough calloused one. Finally, Snorri reached up and knocked on the door.

Nicko would never admit it, but he too was relieved when the door was answered by an old woman, and not the riddler from the House of Foryx. She looked at the pair, dressed rather strangely. The boy had many colorful bracelets on his wrists, and the girl wore long robes, much too big for her.

"May I help you?" the maid asked.

Nicko glanced at Snorri, but she shook her head at him. She still didn't trust her abilities to speak English clearly. Nicko cleared his throat.

"We would like to see Mr. Brownlow, madam. We're here to ask about a job in his boatyard." The woman raised an eyebrow at the strange boy, but she led them into the house. They passed through many rooms which Snorri and Nicko deemed unnecessarily large, although they did bring back fond memories of time at the Palace.

Finally, they reached their destination. An old man, Mr. Brownlow, sat at a desk studying maps, while a young boy sat curled up in an armchair, reading a novel. The maid tapped Mr. Brownlow on the shoulder.

"Visitors, Mr. Brownlow. Looking for work." The man turned and gave the nervous children a warm smile.

"Why, we can always use help at the port. What are your names? Oh, and Oliver, go get the application." The little boy looked up from his book and quickly left to find the papers. Nicko watched the boy leave. He reminded Nicko of Septimus, when he had first become Marcia's Apprentice. He looked ill at ease in his gentlemanly clothing, and he didn't seem to fit with the elegant air of the room.

"My name is Nicko Heap. And this is Snorri Snorrelson." He gestured to Snorri, who blushed.

The man raised his eyebrows. "Snorri? That's an odd name. Are you from Sweden?"

"Umm... yes." Snorri didn't like lying, but she knew that Mr. Brownlow wouldn't believe her if she told the truth. She was pretty sure he wasn't the one. The only person in London they could tell the truth to.

Thankfully for Snorri, Mr. Brownlow was never good at discerning lies from truth. This was why, when Nicko said he was from a British populated island off of Florida, Mr. Brownlow did not question it. Truthfully, this was not a total lie, except there were some rather important details Nicko had "forgotten" to mention.

Soon, Oliver returned with a piece of paper, and Mr. Brownlow had him write down the information. Then he turned back to the young couple.

"Alright, all I need now is your parent's names and your experience."

Nicko gave Snorri anod, telling her it was okay to tell the truth. Snorri spoke first.

"My father was Olaf Snorrelson, he is no longer alive. My mother's name is Alfrún Snorrelson. My father was a trader, but died before I was born. He gave me a boy's name, insisting that I should become a trader like him. I have studied boats since the age of six, and traveled alone from Sweden to, um, Florida when I was thirteen."

Mr. Brownlow looked to Oliver, then back at the girl. These children were impressive, but their stories seemed almost beyond believability. Nicko sensed this, and quickly interrupted Mr. Brownlow's thoughts.

"My parents are Sarah and Silas Heap. I lived and worked at a boatyard for four years, and have briefly steered a cargo ship." Nicko decided to exclude the fact that he had driven safely through a pod of whales, sailed to a very dangerous whirlpool to drop his younger brother in it, and had helped drive a living boat. These seemed less believable.

Mr. Brownlow smiled. "I would be pleased to have you two in my boatyard. Please meet me at the docks tomorrow at nine o'clock, so I can show you around."


	3. Chapter 3: An Old Friend and a New Face

The Dodger grabbed a piece of bread from a stall, and began to make his way through the familiar streets of London. He had spent an uncomfortable week or two with Wrong Way Brown, and had finally decided to make his way back home. Now, he was looking for an abandoned building to spend the night in, when something caught his eye.

A few houses down, lit by a dim lantern was a sign that read: Schuller's Herbs and Medical Supplies. Dodger smiled. It was time to visit some old friends.

When he entered the small shop, a cheery bell rang, and a young girl, sitting at the front desk, looked up. Hannah cocked her head at the boy. She had long hoped that her old friend would return, but in her heart she never believed he would.

"Holding on to your jewels, Hannah?" The boy gave her a wink.

"Dodger!" The girl ran to throw her arms around him. Dodger recoiled at her touch. No one had hugged him since Nancy died. _The past is in the past._ He thought, and accepted her embrace.

Just then, the door jingled again, and a boy, about Dodger's age, entered. The three stared at each other for a minute, then Hannah broke the silence.

"Um... How may I help you?" She walked back to her desk. But the boy couldn't take his eyes off of Dodger.

"Beetle?" He said. No, this boy was younger, but the similarity was there. They had they same dark hair, dark brown eyes, and smooth features.

"What?" Both Dodger and Hannah turned to look at the boy.

"Um, nothing. You just remind me of someone. My name is Septimus, and I was wondering if there were any job openings here."

Hannah began writing something down, but stopped. "Your name is... seventh?"

"Well, I have six older brothers."

"Ah, well I'm Hannah and this is the Dodge..., I mean, this is Jack." She looked over at the Dodger, who, to her dismay, was still staring at the boy in amazement. He walked over to join them.

"Excuse me, but do you happen to know a girl with long blonde hair, wearing a green dress?"

Septimus looked up at Jack. "Yes, have you met her?"

"Well funny story, I was walking through the market and I bumped into your sister, and while I was nabbing-" He was cut short when Hannah, who realized where this story was going, elbowed him in the gut.

"What?" He snapped.

"Do you want to get arrested?" She replied in a harsh whisper, then turned back to Septimus.

"Do you have any experience?"

"My mother studied herbs, and I am a qualified Physician."

"Well, I'll have to ask my brother, but we always could use more help."

The boy looked relieved. "Just one more thing. That girl you said you met, she's looking for a job too. She knows more about herbs than anyone I've ever known, and you could say she has a green thumb." Hannah glanced at the Dodger, who was desperately mouthing "No!". He knew this girl would want to know more about him, and that could be his undoing.

Hannah ignored him. "Of course she can have the job, if my brother agrees. You may meet us at the port tomorrow with your friend. My brother's ship is the Pride of Erin."

"Thanks." And then the boy was gone.


End file.
